Pictionary Junior

Pictionary Junior - Draw objects by category

Pictionary Junior has been one of my favorite games since I started telehealth. And the best part for you is that you probably don't even need to buy the game. The game is meant to be played with teams, but can work 1:1 in therapy too. This version is for kids and there is also an adult version of Pictionary.

Pictionary has been around for a long time, and if you haven't ever played it, it is a drawing game. One person draws a picture, the rest of the players try to guess what it is. So even though you don't have to be a great artist, you do have to feel that you draw good enough to want to try. As a matter of fact, with only one minute to draw, drawing gets real basic. The more unnecessary details you add, the more time you may waste.

Pictionary Junior includes a game board, fun pencil pawns, a die, a timer, Pictionary cards, drawing paper and pencils. The game board has 47 spaces from start to finish. The timer runs for 1 minute. The pencil pawns are so cute that I will have to figure out how else to use them. The die is a standard die (1-6). 

The picture cards are blue on one side (easier to draw) and green on the other (more difficult to draw). There is a category at the top and five items listed under it. These are the items that will be drawn. Each item is printed in a box of a different color. Here are examples:

Green - Harder to draw.                               Blue - Easier to draw.

Zoom has a sharable white board. You can give remote access to other participants and they can control the writing pencil, line thickness, colors, etc. I work with one person who has an Apple tablet and she uses an Apple pen to draw. I would love that, but my tablets are too old at this point to be compatible with a pen.

If you're working on eye-hand coordination, spatial skills, pre-writing shapes and symbols, etc. it can be a fun way to get real handy with a mouse. I have used this with a variety of kids at different levels, not sure how they would do drawing with a mouse, and they have all enjoyed playing and draw well enough for the objects to be recognizable. For kids who can't draw from memory, I just pick a card and draw an image for them to copy. Draw one or two lines at a time and work your way up to drawing an entire object and then letting them draw it. If they can't or don't want to draw with a mouse, I ask them to use a white board and dry erase marker on their end. 

For telehealth we don't bother with the board, pawns and die. We just take turns drawing. Set a timer for 2 minutes and try to draw all five items on your card. You can either keep track of the number of correct guesses and declare a winner at the end, or just draw for fun. Kids haven't even been interested in keeping score. Before playing, drop some of the cards off at the individual's homes.

You could also skip this game and use the Zoom white board with Back Seat Drawing Junior if your kids need something to look at while they draw. I have also had kids copy my Zoom drawing on their own dry erase board while I draw on the ZOOM white board. (Click here to see my opinion on dry erase boards.)
 
I use only the cards when playing on ZOOM, and this is where I think you could make up your own game. Throw out a topic and take turns drawing something you feel falls into that category.

Object:
Sketch your way from start to finish. First person (team to get to the finish square first wins the game.

Set up:
Place the board in the middle of the players. Give each player or team a piece of paper, pencil and pawn. Each team's pawn is placed on the start square of its color. The color of the pawn will also tell players which of the five color-coded items on a card they will be drawing. Shuffle the picture cards. Choose one person from each team to be the first Picturists (people to draw).

Play:
Both teams play at the same time. The two Picturists throw the die and the one with the highest number starts the game. Pick the top card and read the category out loud. Check the board and see the color square that both players are sitting on. Look for that color on the card and that is the item you will be drawing. Secretly show the card to the other Picturist. Turn over the timer and both Picturists will be drawing this item for their team to guess. The first person to yell out the correct answer wins the card for their team. The Picturist throws the die and the winning team moves their pawn that many spaces forward. Another card is drawn, a new Picturist is chosen for each team and both teams play again. If no one guesses the item before the timer runs out, a new card is chosen, new Picturists are chosen, but the die is not thrown and no one moves forward on the board. Keep playing until one team has advanced to the finish square and wins the game. 

Try this:

• Work on visual closure. You draw an object. See how soon they can guess what you are drawing without seeing the whole object.
• Skip the game board. Set a timer for 2 minutes and see how many you can draw before the timer runs out of time.
• Skip buying the game, just give a category and take turns drawing something from the category, with the observer guessing as often as they want as the person drawing draws.

In the box: Game board, 144 word cards (10 items listed on each card) 2 pawns, die, timer, pad of paper, 2 small pencils

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.

Set Cubed

Set Cubed - A board game based on Set the card game

Set Cubed is based on the multi-award-winning card game, Set. Unlike Set the card game, Set Cubed has only three attributes to contend with (shape, color, number), not four. This game reminds me of Qwirkle. 

See the Set card game by clicking here.

Set Cubed includes a small game board, 42 dice and a bag for the dice. The game board measures 10" square. The bag is black so that the dice can be placed inside and you can't see what you're picking. The dice measure about 7/8" square. All six sides are different and some of the dice include the word WILD on one side. Below is an image of the contents in play.

The game is based on making sets. A set is three dice in which each individual feature is all the same OR all different on all three of the dice. There are three features - shape, color, number - and each feature has three possibilities: 1) Shape - oval, squiggle, diamond, 2) Color - red, green, purple, and 3) Number - One shape, two shapes or three shapes. Here is an example of different sets you might make:

How dice can be play:

• Sets can only be made horizontally or vertically.
• Dice can be played anywhere on the board as long as they make a set in one direction, and as long as they use at least one die that is already in play on the board.
• A die can be placed next to or between dice that have already been played, where they don't make a set, as long as they make a set in at least one direction.
• If a die in placed and makes more than one set, count the points for each set.

Scoring - One point is received for each die in a set. If you make one set you get three points. If you make two sets you get six points, etc. If one die placed ends up making two different sets, then that die is scored as one point for each set.

To see my post about the Set card game, click here. 

There are three options for play: Set Cubed, Set Scrabble and Set Crossword. I will describe each below. 

SET CUBED

Object:
To score the most points. The more sets you make, the more points you score.

Set up:
Place the board in the middle of the players. Place the dice in the bag. Each player takes 5 dice from the bag without looking inside the bag. Once all players each have the five dice, they all throw their dice at the same time. Only face-up sides of the dice may be used. The first person to spot a set in their five dice starts the game. They place their three dice on the logo in the middle of the board and record their score.

Play:
Players play one at a time. Each player can place up to three dice in one turn. The dice do not have to all be placed side by side, they can be placed in random places on the board as long as each die ends up making a set.

The next player makes a set(s) on the board using their dice and the dice already on the board. You must build off what is already there. You cannot re-throw your dice. If you can play, do it and record your score. If not, you skip your turn and the next player plays. You may also choose not to play and skip your turn. After each player has played once, that is a round. If each player has a chance during a round and no players can end up playing, everyone re-throws their dice and play continues. At the end of each round, players take more dice from the bag so that they have a total of five for the next round. Again, they all throw they dice. Before the new round starts, each player can decide to throw one or more of their five dice, one more time. The game ends when one person runs out of dice. Each person that has not had a turn yet in that round, gets one more chance to play. The winner is the person who has the highest score.  

SET SCRAMBLE

Throw all the dice in the middle of the table. If any are stacked, un-stack them. Players play all at once looking for and calling SET. Al people call SET they get to pick up their set and place it in front of them. When all the dice are gone, players count their sets and record the number. Play five rounds and the person with the most points is the winner.


SET CROSSWORD

Each player takes 10 dice out of the bag. All players roll their dice at the same time to start the play. Players play at the same time. Each player takes his own 10 dice and makes a crossword form with them, trying to use all 10 dice. Only horizontal and vertical sets count. A die can be played anywhere it makes a set going in one direction, but if it touches dice going in other directions, it does not have to match. If the player cannot use all 10, they must draw a die from the bag and throw it. Keep picking dice, one at a time, if you cannot play them or go out. Each additional die throw must eventually be added to the crossword before the person can go out. Keep playing until someone has used all their dice in their crossword and wins the game.

Try this:

• Skip the game, just throw the dice and make 14 sets.
• Allow only three dice per turn and set a timer, but allow players to turn their dice to look for the best possibilities.
• Skip the game. Sort the dice into three piles, either by color, number or shape. Roll the cubes in-hand, without using the table top or a support surface, to find a side you want to play.
• Pick the dice up by handfuls to put back in the box when you are done playing. Or, hold the box off the edge of the table with one hand and push the pieces into the box with the other hand.    
• Choose one side of one die and then go through the remaining 41 dice and see how many more you can find. Guess how many you will find before you start looking. Rotate the dice in-hand as you go. Record your guess and subtract the difference between what you guessed and what you got. That is your score. Compete to see who has the highest score after three rounds.

In the box: 42 dice, 1 game board, 1 bag

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.